How to write SEO texts that are also user-friendly?

First; think through these questions before you get started

Think about the message, and what exactly does the user get out of reading the text?

• What are users interested in reading about or finding out?
• What do you want to tell readers or what key question do you want to ask?
• What is the purpose of your text?
• What do you want readers to do at the end of the page?

Use the right keywords

Even if Google understands content and the context of text better, you should still include your keyword in your most important elements to make your content clear enough. Pick yourself a main keywords for the post you're going to write, and have some supplemental keywords that fit into the theme. E.g. In this post is SEO Texts the main keyword, mens skrive SEO texts, SEO content, SEO-friendly texts are supplementary keywords.

When working with content for SEO, you should start with a keyword analysis so that you use the words people are actually searching for. Need help getting started and mapping keywords? Please contact us for help in preparing a keyword analysis.

User first!

Google has become more and more focused on content, and is constantly updating the algorithms* that are supposed to learn how to recognize good content. Just 6 years ago, it was an SEO strategy to enter a keyword many times in the text (which at the time worked well). It ended in very unnatural texts, and a lot of grammar errors because one should absolutely write the keyword exactly the way users searched it.

A concrete example is the keyword discount code Zalando. Phrases were often worded something like this: Use a discount code Zalando has and save money on your next purchase! A more natural sentence would have been: use a discount code from Zalando to save money on your next purchase!

Today, Google understands better, and understands that discount code Zalando and discount code from Zalando is the same word. Use keywords naturally and where relevant — avoid spamming the user with the keyword!

*Algorithms: a system Google and search engines use to understand data and content with a focus on relevance and quality, which determines how visible you become in search results.

Structure the content

Make sure your content is user-friendly and easy to read. Use paragraphs, middle titles, bulleted lists, images/video, and other elements that add variety and value to your content. All articles should contain:‍

• H1/Title that is clear to the user and search engines -- what is the post about?
• Pream/Introduction which summarizes the topic about and triggers the user to read on.
• The main content This is where the message of the text comes out. Ensure good air and variety in the content to make it more easy to read.
• A conclusion which should summarize the most important points and call to actions that lead the user further. Get in touch, see what products we offer, read more about, and the like.

How long should the text be?

It depends on what kind of text you write. For product texts, the focus is perhaps more on details and specifications. Then it is not as natural to write a long text about how good those sneakers are, but rather highlight those details that precisely emphasize this. For articles and content that are intended to inspire, provide knowledge or guide, it is advantageous to write longer texts.

Even though Google understands content better and better, we still see that content with 300+ words often *ranks* better. It shows that you have a lot of knowledge on the topic, and the content becomes clearer. Longer texts also often hit more longtail keywords: Longer keywords with lower search volume, but which often hit exactly what the user is looking for. As a result, more keyword variations are encountered, which in turn increases organic traffic.

*Ranking = your position in the search results, the higher you get up in the result, the better your ranking.

How to Write SEO-Friendly Texts

H1/Title and preamble

The main keyword should be included in H1 (the title) and the preamble, this is one of the most important ranking factors — after all, the title tells what the page is actually about, and the preamble helps to support and clarify the title.

Middle Titles and Paragraphs

Good middle titles create air in the content, make it easier for users to navigate the content and clarify what the page is about for Google. Use supplementary keywords in the middle titles where relevant to broader search results. Create the paragraphs where it is natural for the user. Simple rule of mind: each section should have a main idea or a main topic.

For example, in this post are SEO Texts the main keyword, but I also see that several are searching for SEO friendly texts — ergo the intermediate title; How to Write SEO-Friendly Texts that was very relevant to this paragraph.

Filename and alternate caption (img alt text)

The name of the image file and alternative captions should be descriptive, especially for the visually impaired but also because search engines only read the code and do not understand what the image contains. Both the file name and the alternative caption are a ranking factor for image searches and therefore keywords should also be included here. The text should have a maximum of 100 characters/characters. This is how you can combine keywords such as “round mirror” with description of the picture.

Internal linking and link texts

Internlinking is important both to direct the user to the right content and for search engines to crawle* your website in a good way. The link text can also be a positive ranking factor for the page one links to.

Therefore, use descriptive link texts that make it clear to both the user and search engines what kind of page you are linking to. Avoid link texts like here, read more here and see how here, it does not give users or search engines any information about what the next page is about

Here's how you can do it: Also read our post on smart storage solutions!

When creating new content, make sure you link to the content from other relevant articles and pages on your website — then Google will find the content and *index* it in search results faster. It will also make your post stronger because you show authority around that topic.

*Crawling = Google and other search engines crawl your website, find links and new pages, and analyze the content of the various pages you have.

*Indexing = Once Google has crawled your website and found the content, it can make the content visible so that your website shows up in the search results.

URL

Keywords should also be included in the URL. When you enter the post in the CMS (the system used to publish the content), the URL will often be automatically retrieved from the title. Some titles are very long, so here it is an advantage to shorten the url to avoid it becoming very long. A shorter url will be both clearer to search engines, while making very long urls look untidy.

Meta Texts

Include keywords in the meta title/page title, preferably as early as possible — so it's easy for the user to see that you have what they're looking for, and search engines see the relevance of your website. The meta texts are your company's sales text in the search results — Why should users click on your page? Use unique selling points (USP) and call to action (CTAs) to trigger them into your site. A good click-through rate relative to location can be a positive ranking factor. Read more about how to optimize meta texts here.

In short: Do not overdo the use of keywords!

Use your keywords where it's natural, and rather make sure you write a good text with proper grammar. If you think first of all about the user, and adjust your keywords accordingly — you will hit both the user and the search engines better!

Do you need help with SEO optimization of the website yours, thanks contact with us.

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